There’s a
new wave sweeping over the local social media scene and it’s called
#fitmalaysia.

The
initiative, introduced by Youth and Sports Minister Khairy Jamaluddin recently,
encourages Malaysians to post photos of them working out, on various social
media platforms channelled towards the purpose.

According
to Khairy, it’s a movement aimed at turning Malaysia into a sporting nation and
encouraging Malaysians to live fit and healthy lives, forever.

About
time, as we are officially the “heaviest” nation in Southeast Asia – a dubious
honour we can live without.

We are
even ahead of the populous China, with 49 per cent of women and 44 per cent of
men here classified as obese. Recent reports state that two out of five
Malaysian adults are overweight.

That is
not all. We also have an issue with obesity among children with close to
500,000 young ones aged below 18 found to be overweight, as of 2013.

This may
not come as a surprise as we are a nation which loves our food fast, fried and
oily.

How many
of us can resist a steaming plate of Char Kuey Teow, a mee goreng ayam, a roti
canai, or a nasi lemak, any time of the day?

Couple
that with a cup of teh tarik or a can of soft drink, and you have the ideal
Malaysian meal.

Take
Kuala Lumpur for example. You can walk into any 24-hour “mamak” restaurant, say
at 2am, and find people feasting on a plate of Nasi Kandar with generous
helpings of fried food to go with it.

Such
unhealthy eating habits and the almost non-existent awareness of the importance
of working out are among factors that had made us the fat country that we are
today.

It is a
given that being obese alone does not inflict all the damage on a human body.
It brings with it illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure, which in
turn lead to heart issues and other problems that can turn fatal if not
attended to properly.

Perhaps
the #fitmalaysia initiative is a step in the right direction, at the right
time.

In its
Facebook page, #fitmalaysia proclaims “what do you get out of it? A sense of
satisfaction that you’re part of the social wave, see how other Malaysians are
working out by going through #fitmalaysia hashtags in Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram, and a self-pat on the back”.

Judging
by Khairy’s twitter account, the reception to #fitmalaysia is picking up.

He had
recently tweeted “#fitmalaysia is about small but real steps. One less ciggie
(cigarette), one less the tarik, half portion of rice, take stairs. Start
somewhere to succeed.”

Coffee
joint Quartet in Taman Tun Dr Ismail (TTDI) also recently joined in the cause
by offering free coffee for anyone who can do 20 push-ups.

National
badminton superstar Datuk Lee Chong Wei had also endorsed the initiative,
tweeting “Don’t settle for less, give it your 200% and you could be no 1.”

Sounds
promising thus far, but will it bear fruit in the long run?

Let’s
hope that people don’t snap photos of themselves working out just for the sake
of getting their faces in the #fitmalaysia social media channels, and then continue
to pig out on heart attack inducing oily burgers.

Perhaps
Khairy can consider re-introducing the now defunct Rakan Muda initative,
started in the 90s, and devise programmes which are physical in nature to
attract participation from people of all shapes, sizes and age groups.

While
he’s at it, he could also rope in his broad-waist cabinet colleagues to also
work out and lead healthy lifestyles so they can lead by example.